The purpose of this project is to support a scientific meeting, Progress in Motor Control VIII (PMC VIII) to be held in July, 2011 in Cincinnati, OH. Motor control is a wide- ranging and fundamentally important topic of scientific investigation. Disorders of gait, balance, and movement are unfortunately common. They occur in children (e.g., developmental coordination disorder) and adults (e.g., Parkinson's disease), and can result from neurological insults such as stroke or traumatic brain injury. Poor motor control (e.g., balance problems) is also associated with other public health issues, such as injuries from falls or declines in physical fitness that in turn lead to a cascade of additional health problems. Furthering our understanding of motor control thus presents opportunities for improving public health. The goal of PMC VIII is to advance scientific understanding of motor control. The specific aim of this proposal is to make PMC VIII more affordable and accessible to a diverse group of scientists. Using grant funds to pay some conference fees directly will lower costs for all participants and thus is expected to increase participation, especially by students, post-docs, and junior faculty. We will also offer grants to help offset conference costs for qualified students, with additional support for post-docs and junior faculty who belong to groups underrepresented in the field of motor control. Achieving this aim will help increase participation and ensure a high-quality scientific meeting that is relevant to the NIH mission and public health. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: This proposal will support Progress in Motor Control 2011, a scientific conference on the topic of motor control. The conference will present opportunities for improving public health by furthering our understanding of movement control and how movement control is compromised for people who have movement disorders such as Parkinson's disease or other problems with movement such as poor balance.